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Wednesday, February 8, 2017

If you've been following my bog, you know that one of my all time besties is Kris!!!!!

I met her when she was looking for an interior designer.

She saw an article about me in House Beautiful that showed me with lots of dogs, and since she lived with a dog (and kids) she thought that maybe I would be able to help her...

with her house.

If she knew that it was going to change both of our lives....

I wonder if she would have made that fateful call.....

of course she would!!!!!

the woman is crazy about me!!!!!

She wanted help with her living room.

This is what it looked like when I first saw it.

The kids weren't in the room at the time.

That helped.

Nor the Foosball table, which also helped.

(that had been moved across the hall to the dining room.)

She and her husband Keith had bought a turn of the century home in the Boston suburbs that had been allowed to go to seed over the years.

By attacking one room at a time, and not cutting any corners, we have transformed this rundown residence into what I now feel is a showplace.

However, because Kris is not a showoff.....

THAT IS LEFT UP TO ME ME ME!!!!!

To give you an idea of how long this has taken, the little boy in the photo is now out of college, fully employed and over 6 feet tall.

I have shown you pictures of this room before, but this past year we finally had the windows replaced, and I am always blown away by the difference muntins make in a window.

For those in the class that don't know what a muntin is.....

mun·tin

/ˈmənt(ə)n/

noun US

a bar or rigid supporting strip between adjacent panes of glass.

Most folks call them mullions.

For those in the class what don't know the real definition of mullion.....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mullion

A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window, door, or screen, or is used decoratively. When dividing adjacent window units, its primary purpose is to provide structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening.

So think of it this way.

A muntin holds the panes of glass in a window sash.

A mullion is the structural vertical piece between windows when there are double or triple or more windows together.

Now that you know this.....

if you use this out in the real world, most people won't know what the hell you're talking about.

You're welcome!!!!!

Sooooooo.....

This is the way Kris's living room looked before we put in the new windows.

I had designed a new fireplace for her and had the bookshelves removed.

We had the walls re-plastered and crown moldings installed.

There were two doorways into the front hall (it must have been two rooms at one point in the house's life) and we had one closed off and plastered over.

I had new recessed lighting put in in one of my wonderful and fabulous lighting plans.

In the shot below you can see two of the windows that were replaced.

The biggest change was to the middle picture window.

I HAVE HATED THIS FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS

AND YEARS AND .........

Once again you will have to deal with my blurry images.

my hands are a little shaky, and I am too lazy to drag around my tripod.

SO JUST DEAL WITH IT!!!!!

In the image below you can see the new windows.

isn't it just the most amazing thing!!!!!!!

I have this love affair with muntins.

They make everything cozier in my less than humble opinion.

Behind the sofa is where the second door into the hall used to be.

By removing it we were able to create a better floorplan in the room.

This shows the long wall that now exits with the removal of the second set of doors.

This is the view looking into the room from the front entry hall.

I designed and needlepointed the seat covers for the pair of hall chairs flanking the chest of drawers.

This is a shot with the old windows, I am an idiot, I am an idiot, I am an idiot.....

I forgot to take a new one.

These is the sitting area to the right of the French doors leading into the hall.

You can see the reworked moldings that were created for all the doors and windows.

Believe or not.....

Kris and I still have some walls in this house that need to have some stuff hung on them.

You know what I hate? FAKE muntins, which is what I have in my new build in Flerida. You know, the ones that are sandwiched between the glass? They ain't foolin' anyone. And they only put them on the front windows, as if nobody sees the side or back you your house! Bummer! Have you got a trick up your sleeve to make them look real?

The "ball hanging above the piano" is a globe on a stand. One of the finials is blocking the view of its base.As to "fake muntins", I know no way to make the ones sandwiched between glass look better. All of this is a trade off to have the energy efficiency of double glazed windows.....oy.

Given the immense popularity of "open concept" homes today, it's heartening to see a room with actual walls to hang pictures. Vaulted ceilings, ship lap walls and barn doors--the design philosophy perpetuated by Joanna Gaines of "Fixer Upper" --will looked tired and dated in a few short years. But classic timeless rooms like the one you designed for Kris will never go out of style. Bravo Betsy!

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I've been a designer for longer than some of you have been alive. I have now started a new page of my career, closing my firm and designing furniture, as well as writing decorating books. Some of you may be familiar with my work over the years by seeing me in magazines. I tend to think that I'm funny, so please read my postings with a grain of salt thrown in for flavor. My spelling is atrocious, so I am refusing any responsibility for spell check right here and now. I hope anyone reading this will enjoy the pictures, info and humor.